


Hair

by TomatoBookworm



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: 7x01 spoilers, Angst and Feels, Canon Compliant, Feels, Friendship, Gen, POV Skye | Daisy Johnson, References to 5x14 aftermath, references to major character deaths
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:34:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24459034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TomatoBookworm/pseuds/TomatoBookworm
Summary: Five times Daisy and Jemma asked about each other’s hair, and the one time Jemma helped Daisy with a haircut.
Relationships: Jemma Simmons & Skye | Daisy Johnson
Comments: 10
Kudos: 70





	Hair

**Author's Note:**

> \- This contains spoilers for 7x01. If you haven’t seen the season 7 premiere yet, please turn back. 
> 
> \- Thank you to @accio-the-force/XOLove47 for the beta read! I learn something new every day about dialogue punctuations :)

Skye took another sip of her beer. The alcohol cabinet on the Bus was amazing. Next to her, a tipsy Simmons giggled. 

“Okay, next question!” Simmons said. “You looked so nice when we first met you. How did you do that when you lived in a van? I mean, your hair’s so pretty!”

“Thank you.” Skye raised her bottle in mock salute. “But a hacker never reveals all her secrets. Besides, your hair looks great too.”

“Ugh, it’s so difficult to curl my hair with the high altitude and different atmosphere pressure,” Simmons said. “Not to mention I don’t want to monopolize the bathroom when we live in such close quarters.”

“I don’t think the men have gotten that memo,” Skye said. “What do they even do in the bathroom with all that time? Manscaping?”

“Eww!” Simmons scrunched up her nose and gulped down her drink. “I did not need that thought, Skye!” 

“Sorry,” Skye laughed. “Let’s keep that between us.”

“Oh, I know, that will be our safeword!” Simmons said. “Next time we have to communicate with each other in secret, we will work ‘manscaping’ into the conversation.”

“First of all, I am cutting you off,” Skye took Simmons’ glass. “‘Manscaping’ and ‘safeword’ should never appear in the same sentence. Also, no offense Simmons, but you are truly awful at improvising. I am never going into the field with you.”

  
  


* * *

  
  


Skye held up two bottles of beer when Jemma opened the door. 

“Ladies night?”

“Yes please.” 

Skye sat down and looked around. She hadn’t spent much time here before. The room was neat and tidy, but it didn’t feel like its owner. There was no personality to it. Of course, Jemma wasn’t focused on interior design back when she was busy helping Fitz with his rehab and setting up the new lab. For the last several months, Jemma didn’t even live here. 

“So, how does it feel to be back?” 

“A little strange,” Jemma admitted. “There are lots of new faces.” She paused. “At least I don’t have to worry about any of them turning against me.”

“You are back with your friends,” Skye said. “I still can’t believe you went undercover at Hydra. Did you compliment anyone on their bald head?”

Jemma laughed, the first time in Skye’s hearing since her return, “No I did not. Going undercover wasn’t all terrible. It was good to feel like someone else, if only for a moment.” She played with the ends of her hair. 

“I like the new style,” Skye said. “It suits you.”

“Is it too cliched?” Jemma asked. “A different hair for a different Jemma?” 

“Who cares?” Skye said. “It’s hair. At the end of the day, I am just glad you are back.”

* * *

  
  


It was strange, sitting in Jemma’s room again. Fitz had kept the place pristine without even a hint of dust, but it still had that unoccupied feeling. Daisy was glad she brought the flowers. At least they provided a touch of color. 

At some point, between catching up on everything that had happened in the last six months, Jemma tilted her head and looked at Daisy. 

“And what about your hair? When did you decide to cut it?”

Daisy reached up and touched her hair, “Why, does it look weird?” 

“I like it,” Jemma said. “But you’ve always had long hair since the day we met.”

“Yeah, as it turned out, finding and losing my parents was a little more traumatic than the Hydra uprising or getting my powers.” Daisy shrugged, knowing full well Jemma would see through the casual gesture. “Anyway, new hair for the new name, am I right?”

“It’s your name,” Jemma said. “And your body.” A ghost of a smile touched her lips. “I might need the name of your stylist myself. After I feel like myself again.”

  
  


* * *

  
  


The silence was getting on Daisy’s nerves as she drove away from the apartment. Conversation was hard during a voluntary kidnapping. She picked the first topic that came to mind. 

“Well? Not going to say anything about the hair or the makeup?”

Jemma shook her head. She didn’t say anything immediately, and Daisy was trying to think of another topic before Jemma started talking. 

“To be honest, I am not quite sure that I would have done things differently.” 

Daisy looked over at her friend in surprise. Jemma huffed. 

“Not the running away part. You know how I feel about that. Changing your look though. I might have done something even more drastic if Fitz died to save me.”

Daisy blinked back a tear. Jemma knew all about feeling guilty too, except she didn’t deserve it, not like Daisy. 

“You won’t lose him,” Daisy said as she kept her eyes focused on the road. Not as long as she stayed away. Her friends would be safe then. 

  
  


* * *

  
  


They were sitting together again, going over Zephyr’s manifest for the upcoming journey. Daisy checked the weapons inventory matched her request, then she passed the tablet over to Jemma, who brushed a hair aside before taking it. 

“So, bangs?”

Jemma raised an eyebrow, “Blond hair and purple highlights?”

“Fine.” 

They went back to work. 

“You know, one of these days we should learn to do each other’s hair. Save money for the next time we are emotionally traumatized.”

Jemma looked up from the tablet, “Next time?”

“Simmons, I admire your optimism, but have you looked at our track record?”

“No, I meant,” Jemma struggled to get the words out. “We will still be together next time?”

It was Daisy’s turn to raise an eyebrow, “I am coming on this mission with you.”

“And I am very grateful,” Jemma said. “When we find Fitz though, I would understand if you are done. With me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“There’s a difference between wanting to save someone, and wanting to spend time with the person,” Jemma said quietly. “Fitz will need a lot of help, now that we know. I won’t leave his side again, but it won’t be fair for me to ask you to stay.”

“Yes, things will be weird for a while.” Daisy took a slow breath and looked Jemma in the eyes. “But I’ve lost too many people already. I am not giving you up too.”

  
  


* * *

  
  


The new Zephyr was familiar in many ways, but not enough for Daisy to know where everything was stored in the lab. 

“Hey, do you have any scissors around here?” Daisy asked. “No purple hair in the 30s.”

“Here you are.” Jemma handed her the requested instrument. “Want any help?”

“Actually, yes.” Daisy passed the scissors back. “The highlights go up pretty far, I will need to take several inches off, and I can’t see around my own neck.”

Jemma took out a lab coat and a handheld mirror, “It’s not a salon, but we will make it work.”

Daisy snorted as she put the lab coat on in lieu of a cape, “We did say we should learn to do each other’s hair. At least I am getting it cut for the mission, not as a coping mechanism for emotional trauma. That’s already an improvement over my usual beauty parlor visits.”

“But the trauma is there,” Jemma said quietly. 

“Oh I know, it just hasn't hit yet,” Daisy said with a shrug. “However long it’s been for you, I’ve only had minutes.” Sarge. May in her arms. Her heart didn’t have a chance to process. “Don’t worry. You can’t say I am running away this time. We will all be living together on a plane again. I hope Fitz included an extra bathroom in the upgrade.”

“He did.” Jemma’s eyes crinkled, the first sign of warmth since she swept them away on the new Zephyr. “We have to share, but as long as Mack and Deke don’t monopolize the bathrooms, the schedule should work out.” Jemma turned serious once more. “Daisy, you know I am here if you want to talk.”

She knew. Whatever Jemma wasn’t saying yet to the team, Daisy trusted her friend. There were only a few people that Daisy would allow holding sharp instruments to the back of her neck, and Jemma was still one of them. 

Daisy simply nodded, “We will figure it out.” 

“Us against the world?” Jemma commented wryly. 

“And robots, aliens, et cetera et cetera. Who’s counting?”

  
  



End file.
